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Post by dgriffin on Dec 11, 2008 10:07:19 GMT -5
I thought we had a specific "technical questions" area, but can't find it. If I missed it, my apologies.
Anyway, I'm having a problem with Firefox and have had for some time. It eats cycles and memory. I'll be surfing along and notice pageloads taking longer and longer. And then even typing slows down as the letters take a wee bit of time to appear after my fingers strike the keys. Launching the Task Manager Performance meter, I'll see that the CPU is running at 100 % or almost. Looking at the list of processes, I'll see that firefox has expanded from a normal 70 or 80K to 130 or 140 memory handles.
And this happens on both PC's here.
Anyone seen the same or know what's happening?
Tx.
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Post by Clipper on Dec 11, 2008 10:29:32 GMT -5
I notice that same thing occasionally, but I have never paid much attention to it, because it only lasts a short time. I am not savvy enough to have investigated it as you did. I just wait a second, and the cursor blinks again, and I continue what I was doing. You are in the section where we have addressed computer issues before, and maybe Ralph can help ya.
My machine is loading slower than normal and taking longer to bring up pages. I have done a registry cleaning and defrag, to no avail. I think I just may have too much garbage loaded, and need to delete. I may actually take it in and have the hard drive reformatted and start over. I am afraid to simply go to "my programs" and start deleting for fear of deleting an execute file or something critical that would bring me to dead stop, haha.
I also get a lot of spam on my hotmail account, so I may simply notify friends that I am going to Gmail or Yahoo and delete my hotmail account. I've heard that hotmail is really bad for spam. My yahoo account seldom gets any junk like that.
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Post by rrogers40 on Dec 11, 2008 12:09:07 GMT -5
Use Opera!
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Post by Ralph on Dec 11, 2008 14:30:26 GMT -5
I was having problems with Firefox a while back, but they have ceased since I updated to Firefox/3.0.4.
Since then I haven't had any problems.
Right now I am bouncing between 80 - 95K in memory usage, but then I have two FF windows open on different screens.
Despite how many programs I have running at any one time I don't have the lag that you are getting. Even when I have CS2 running Firefox performs just fine.
The only thing that ever slows me down is when I am bouncing between CS2 and another photo program.
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Post by dgriffin on Dec 11, 2008 14:36:31 GMT -5
Before I tried Firefox and before Clipper's Busy Corner, Opera was always my first choice. But, I like Firefox's features and add-ons. And, for some reason, I have trouble using Opera here on this forum. I have no idea why, and evidently you don't have any problem, Ryan. Strange. The problem is that I get 404's when clicking on half of the pages here while using Opera. I've never had that happen with any browser at any site before. |
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Post by dgriffin on Dec 11, 2008 14:38:09 GMT -5
Ralph, I just checked and I'm at 3.03. I'll go to 3.04 and see what happens. Maybe that'll solve it. Any idea what causes my Opera problem I mentioned above?
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Post by Ralph on Dec 11, 2008 15:29:04 GMT -5
I like Firefox for the add ons and extensions I can run with it as well, which is one reason mine uses a little more memory thanif you run it without all the gee-gaws (Forecastfox, Littlefox, Flagfox, etc.).
I have no clue what's up with your Opera, just not familiar with that browser.
I do know that there are many things that don't swap out well browser wise. Our store system uses Radiant which is hosted by Blue Cube/Red Prairie. Great system till you try using it on anything but IE.
Keep in mind that though I have three "real time" anti-virus/spyware type programs running at the same time, as well as Outlook, I have my system pretty much stripped bear of all the BS that usually loads and runs forever.
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Post by dgriffin on Dec 11, 2008 18:40:55 GMT -5
Yup, I've turned off a lot of stuff in msconfig's startup and services lists. But here's an interesting thing. I've never been able to get this laptop from xp SP1 to SP2. It'll upgrade, but then I get memory leaks up the gazoo and can't even use the machine. I've tried twice. The last time, the system couldn't find a system restore point and I was unable to go back. So I thought I'd try to remove some MSoft updates manually. Big Mistake!! I was finally able to make it work, but in the meanwhile, I loaded another Windows XP in another partition, bare as a baby's bottom. But you should see that baby go! Everything is almost instantaneous, from page loads to graphic operations.
Well, you can guess what I got to thinking. I went over to the original XP partition and turned EVERYTHING off, inclusting avast (actually uninstalled it temporarily) except what was necessary. And compared that to the new streamedlined XP partition. The new XP partition is still a lot faster. The moral: what's slowing down my original windows is more than the startup and services software.
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Post by Ralph on Dec 12, 2008 2:27:07 GMT -5
Hehehehe........ Makes ya want to take it out and just empty a clip into it doesn't it!?!?! 
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Post by rrogers40 on Dec 12, 2008 13:53:58 GMT -5
Thats the miracle of modern technology for ya
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Post by dgriffin on Dec 12, 2008 20:20:41 GMT -5
Somebody .... was it on this forum? .... was thinking about taking their PC in for a re-load. I wonder if it would be worth it and I wonder what it would cost. We have a couple of Joe and Pop places around here.
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Post by Clipper on Dec 12, 2008 21:09:55 GMT -5
The last time I had it done with my first PC it was $60. Then I had the problem again and it was $90. After $150 of that crap, Kathy bought me this machine for my Birthday last year. It is just loaded up with unnecessary crap, and a mutual friend of ours is going to try and remedy my problem while I am up there. I am bringing the CPU with me along with my software discs. It runs fine, but it has gotten slow in loading pages and such, and I am sure it is just because of all the crap that is bogging down the speed. I've been downloading for a year, and have not ever removed any of my unused programs due to lack of knowledge as to how to accomplish it.
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Post by Ralph on Dec 13, 2008 2:21:41 GMT -5
Most of the time the reason PC's slow down is because of system failure due to poor maintenance and/or setup in the beginning.
A lot of people and places have told me that you need to do a complete fresh install of the OS at least every year for it to work right.
Bull.
I have an 3 1/2 year old 32bit e-Machine that I have been running almost non-stop for three years. It has done dual duty as my office PC and now has been up here for almost a year as my server.
The only time it is ever shut off is when it has to reboot from an update or I shut it down to vacuum it out from the dust.
And I don't use any special programs to safeguard my system other than the ones that are out there for free.
So while a fresh install of the OS may be in order, without following it up with a watchful eye, you'll wind up right back to where the problem started.
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Post by dgriffin on Dec 13, 2008 14:41:58 GMT -5
Ralph. I agree with you in principal. Yet, how to explain the difference in the two partitions I noted above? Maybe I have yet to find more crap on the slow system.
Clipper, I will tell you one thing I know to slow down a system, and that is the %#$%&^^& ing Norton software! I thought I had it off a friend's PC, but some remnant of Norton hides on the PC and the machine still ran slow. Then I discovered software called Norton Removal Tool. I'll send you copy if you want, and if you no longer use Norton, of course. But I should let Ralph comment first.
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Post by Ralph on Dec 13, 2008 14:58:33 GMT -5
Hehehehe.........
Norton sucks!!!! They used to be a good product, but after 2005 their "tools" became more and more invasive and harder to track down and delete off your system.
I had Norton 360 on my server for a day, it had to go after that.
Took me almost a week to find it all and purge it.
The problem with a system that bogs down is not just finding the cookies and other tidbits left behind, but so many of the malware crap that is out there will dig itself into your registry so far that you can't find it.
I suspect that this is what you are encountering Dave. The only problem is that digging into the registry to get rid of something can have disastrous effects if you don't know exactly what you are doing.
Playing "hunt & peck" in there is like playing Russian roulette with an automatic........you're almost sure to do some damage.
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